The Rajya Sabha will take up voting on the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Amendment Bill or the UAPA Bill on Friday, August 2. The controversial UAPA bill empowers the Narendra Modi-led BJP government to designate individuals as terrorists.
On Thursday, the UAPA Bill was tabled in the Upper House of the Parliament by Minister of State (MoS) Home Affairs G Kishan Reddy. The discussion on the bill, which continued till 8 pm yesterday, led to a disagreement between the government and the Opposition parties.
Opposition parties including the Congress, Samajwadi Party, Trinamool Congress and MDMK opposed the bill. The Congress and DMK leaders staged a walkout after the Chair rejected their plea to discuss the bill on Friday. The opposition MPs expressed concerns about its draconian provisions and said the law would be used against anyone who opposed the government.
Amid high-voltage drama in the House, the UAPA bill was passed by the Lok Sabha on July 24.
Rajya Sabha passes UAPA BillThe Rajya Sabha on Friday passed anti-terror amendment bill. 147 MPs voted in favour of the Bill and 42 were against it.
The House has been adjourned till 2 pm.
Rajya Sabha votes on UAPA BillThe Upper House of the Parliament is voting on the amendments to the UAPA Bill.
UAPA will fight terror, has no other purpose: Amit ShahBJP President and Union Home Minister Amit Shah said, "This (UAPA) Act is to fight terror and has no other purpose."
UAPA will fight terror, has no other purpose: Amit ShahBJP President and Union Home Minister Amit Shah said, "This (UAPA) Act is to fight terror and has no other purpose."
UAPA Bill could be misused: OppositionThe Opposition criticized the UAPA Bill 2019 in the Rajya Sabha, saying that it does not clearly state as to how a person would be a labelled a terrorist and could be misused. The Congress-led opposition demanded the Bill be sent to a select committee for further discussion.
While speaking during the debate on the Bill, Congress leader Kapil Sibal said it could be misused to label anyone as a terrorist. "I support this Bill if you agree to sent this to a select committee. Otherwise I oppose it," said Sibal.
Rajya Sabha test for UAPA Bill: No zero hour in House todayThe voting on the UAPA Bill will begin as soon as the Rajya Sabha convenes as there will be no zero hour in the House today.
The UAPA Bill was tabled in Rajya Sabha on Thursday for discussion just a week after it was passed by the Lok Sabha. This bill empowers the government to designate individuals as terrorists.
